OLIVIER DAHAN

Grace Of Monaco

Last year two biopics were totally ignored. One of them was Diana (am I really the only one who considers this film to be a little masterpiece?) And of course Grace Of Monaco. The story of Grace Kelly was from the start a catastrophe. There were not only the quarrels between director Olivier Dahan and Harvey Weinstein, the film was also slashed down by critics when it opened the Cannes Film Festival. Nicole Kidman probably expected an different reaction when she got the chance to play the most glorious film diva in cinema.

Grace Kelly deserves better, yet the film has some value. These positive words are merely due to Nicole Kidman. If you take a look at the movie poster, you immediately see that they couldn’t have found anyone better to play the roll of the Princess of Monaco than Kidman. Unfortunately Dahan didn’t want to make a traditional biography. We learn nothing about her childhood or how she met Rainier III (Tim Roth) (even though everyone knows that this was in Cannes), because the story starts in 1962. Meanwhile, Grace was thoroughly fed up with the parties (and possibly her boring husband ). Hitchcock went to Monaco to convince the princess to start in Marnie, but her husband objected. The sovereignty of Monaco was in great danger and therefore Grace better concentrated on her career as a princess.

It remains a mystery why Dahan chose such a quirky approach. Who wants to see a film about Grace Kelly with Nicole Kidman in the lead role that deals mainly with politics? Fortunately Kidman is great and proves once again that she is the most beautiful and best actress. Remember that Kidman is a 46 year-old woman who plays someone who’s just 30!